The Advisory Committee on Senior Civil Service Appointments sent a supplementary opinion to the prime minister on Tuesday confirming their view that Israel Defense Forces Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman is suitable for the position of Mossad director.
“Most of the members of the committee determined in their opinion that there was no defect in the integrity of Maj. Gen. Gofman, and that they had even strengthened their opinion qualitatively and substantially in light of the additional materials provided to them,” said the Prime Minister’s Office.
The committee’s majority, including Daniel Herskowitz, former head of the Israel Civil Service Commission; Talia Einhorn, a law professor at Ariel University; and Moshe Tery, former chairman of the Israel Securities Authority, had originally approved the appointment. Asher Grunis, chairman of the committee and a former Supreme Court president, was the one dissenting voice.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “categorically” rejected the minority opinion that the issue needed to be examined further.
“Gofman was subjected to unnecessary legal pains and that the mountain did not give birth to a single mouse,” according to his office’s statement.
The prime minister said he expected Israel’s High Court of Justice to reject the petitions against Gofman and cease delaying his entry into office, which is scheduled to begin immediately on June 2 upon the conclusion of the outgoing Mossad chief’s term.
Several left-wing NGOs had petitioned the High Court against the appointment, including the Movement for Quality Government in Israel, the Movement for Moral Purity and Forum Homat Magen.
Also petitioning against the decision was Ori Elmakayes.
The “Elmakeyes Affair” has taken center stage in the fight over Gofman’s appointment. Elmakayes, a 17-year-old influencer, was recruited by Gofman, then head of the 210th “Bashan” Division in the IDF Northern Command, for an Arabic-language influence campaign.
Elmakeyes was fed classified information, which he then publicized on the internet. He was arrested and charged with espionage by the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and held in isolation for two months. When it was discovered he was working for the IDF, the indictment was dropped in January 2024.
Critics say Gofman should be disqualified as he didn’t receive permission to carry out his influence campaign, which compromises his integrity. Elmakeyes blames Gofman for “disavowing” him, leaving him to face prison alone.
Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who also opposed Goffman’s appointment, said in her legal opinion to the court, “There is no dispute that Gofman was aware of the operation of an Israeli citizen by the division; that he gave his approval for the actual operation; and that Gofman and the division were not authorized to carry out this activity without permission.”
On May 7, the three members of the Advisory Committee in favor of Gofman submitted their own response to the court. They said they had thoroughly examined all the allegations against Gofman, heard from a number of senior officials, including the IDF chief of staff and the outgoing head of the Mossad, and concluded Gofman acted with integrity.
They said after reviewing all the classified materials that their opinion had even been strengthened that they should not disqualify Gofman.
The three sharply criticized the petitioners’ arguments, which they said “tried to mislead” the court into believing that Grunis’s opinion was somehow decisive. Committee decisions are made by a regular majority, just as they are in courts, they noted.
Gofman, through his attorney, submitted his own response on May 8, asserting that the petitioners were seeking to “replace the democratic system of government” by taking from the elected prime minister the responsibility for the management of the state’s security and placing it in the hands of the High Court.
Gofman highlighted his 30 years of distinguished service in the IDF and his valor on Oct. 7, 2023, during the Hamas-led invasion of southern Israel. (Upon learning of the attack, Gofman drove south from his home in Ashdod, engaged the enemy until he was seriously wounded.)
